Ok, you have imported a smart filter into your image as it was explained previously. It appears in the target document as a new smart object.
- In the Layers palette, place the "filter name" object in front of (above) the smart object you want to filter.
NB Make sure that the "filter name" layer is currently selected. (On screenshot 1, the "Trace Contour" is prepared for filtering the "Layer 2".)
- Now that you are ready to apply the filter, double-click the "Add Filter" pictogram in the Effects palette.
- Then, in the dialog box, tune filter setting (screenshot 2) and click "OK".
- In some cases, the action may move the filtered layer backwards (downwards). For example, on screenshot 3, the former text layer has been moved behind the Former Background. Please keep this possibility in mind and, if necessary, restore the stacking order in your Layers palette manually.
- Note also, that filtered layers are automatically renamed to "Smart Filter (1)". Since in Photoshop Elements smart filters don't appear in the Layers palette, it's probably the only way to "count" the applied filters.
The action converts the target layer to a smart object and copies to it the imported filter. To confirm this the "smart-filter" 
icon appears on the layer. Please remember that the converted layer is not editable any more unless you rasterize (simplify) it. This means, in particular, that you won't be able to alter a filtered text.
